


Last Surprise

by orphan_account



Category: Persona 5, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Akechi!Misha, Akira!Rob, Ann!Matt, Futaba!Osric AAAAA BEST DESICION, Haru!Jared, Kawakami!Rachel, Makoto!Jensen, Morgana!Scout, Ryuji!Rich, Sae!Kim, Sakura!Mark, Suicide Attempt, THATS ALL YOURE GETTING, The guards and igor are the same, Yusuke!Seb, and im just gonna call kamoshida 'john smith' because fuck him he doesnt deserve a proper identity, chuck cant spell 'descision' despite listening to kids by mgmt sixty times, drug mention, everyone thinks matt is hot bc the same thing happens to ann, fuck you atlus, happy ending!, hes 15, i dont know much about american locations help me, l o o k i n c o o l j o k e r ! ! !, mark s that is, mark sheppard is a dad, matt is doing his best, matt's friend's name isnt shiho its lucy, more charas to be added, more to be added - Freeform, now for the fun tags! (sarcasm), osric is the exception to the 'all the phantom thieves are 16', possible abuse mention, pretty much everyone in smith's class is overworked, probably gonna put jake abel as mishima, rape mention, rich joke flirts with matt, rob is beautiful protect him, save yourselves, the phantom thieves are 16, yall can ship ships if you wanna but no ones gonna kiss in this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-06
Updated: 2017-08-14
Packaged: 2018-12-12 00:50:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11726085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: "I am thou, thou art I."-It's been a long time, but the police have caught the Joker, leader of the phantom thieves. He has some explaining to do.i am orphaning this work due to my lack of interest in supernatural all together over the last few weeks, i dont feel like ill be able to continue this. im so sorry. i know i said in the notice i was confident but i really cant do it.





	1. >This is a work of fiction.

**Author's Note:**

> IF YOU HAVE HEEDED THE WARNINGS AND WANT TO WATCH GAMEPLAY/PLAY THE GAME/YOU HAVE DONE THOSE THINGS ALREADY, YOU DONT NEED TO READ THIS

Hello there, and thank you for taking interest in this fanfic!

This is not an actual chapter, but more a question answerer of sorts.

Firstly, something I need to get off my chest.

Q: As someone who has played Persona, I understand your reasoning of not wanting to select a cast member for Kamoshida. But why must Matt be Ann? Will he go through the same experience Ann did?

A: I wanted r2m to be the first three. I also believe Carmen fits Matt in a way.

As for Ann’s experience, I’m not going to enjoy writing that at all. I actuallly wanted to put this off because of that. People have probably written rpf fics that are more horrible to the characters than this but still Matt’s one of my favourite people e v e r and it’s really not a nice thought, but it also brings to light something I feel isn’t discussed enough.

Please know, at this point, to heed the tags. A lot of heavy issues are discussed in persona, and I don’t know the actors personally. This is a work of fiction, despite the characters being based of real people.

This idea is actually based of a dream I had. In said dream, Matt was actually Akira, but he was the only one present. Richard is a simple pick for Ryuji. I love his personality. However, it was between Matt and Rob for the role of Akira. There are no ships in this fic, but in Persona, I actually ship Akira and Ryuji. I find Rob and Rich’s brother like friendship nice, and I feel Rob gets put down as the ‘cute, needs to be saved’ character most of the time, and while sure, that’s cute, adding him as a protagonist is a breath of fresh air.

I’m avoiding the point, aren’t I?

If you haven’t played the game or watched gameplay (Which would be a helpful move), Kamoshida isn’t a very nice guy.

Here’s an extract from Ann’s wikia, to put her situation simply.

“Her only friend is Shiho Suzui. Ann met Shiho when Shiho told Ann that Ann's painting sucks during art class. Ann is being targeted by the volleyball coach Suguru Kamoshida, as she reluctantly makes appearances with him (in order to protect her friend) as vicious rumors spread around the school that she is sleeping with him.”

It’s further referenced in this scene. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJTksedkK_o

Her friend is unfortunately assaulted and attempts suicide as a result. I won’t reveal anything else other than that, but I can tell you she gets justice, don’t worry.  
I don’t like this part of Ann’s story. The only part of this arc that I like is when she kicks Kamoshida’s ass. Not all of the stories are going to be exact, but I don’t want to chicken out and make this one too different. It’s an important issue.

I haven’t decided a name for Matt’s friend yet, but she follows Shiho’s story and Matt follows Ann’s up to Kamoshida (Who, also, will probably be renamed). ‘Kamoshida’ doesn't advanced on Matt at first. Instead of telling him to make ‘appearances’ like Kamoshida does with Ann or Shiho loses her position, he instead tells him (and ‘shiho’) to go to counselling sessions. He spends these sessions scaring the fuck out of Matt (this is mentioned by Matt, not actually shown), but no physical contact is made, it’s all emotional manipulation. ‘Kamoshida’ THEN threatens their positions. This is when the advance happens, which is when Rob joins the school, and the coffee scene in the youtube clip happens shortly after, though Matt doesn't say exactly what Ann says because at the currently time 'Kamoshida' has only advanced on him once. Again, I won’t reveal anything further than this, but tl:dr: ‘Kamoshida’ isn’t a good guy, and what happens to ‘Shiho’ and Matt isn’t okay at all. While Matt doesn't actually get assaulted like 'Shiho' does, he blames himself for what happened, beginning the reveal of Carmen.

The advances aren’t described. They’re just mentioned, but the rape/noncon warning is due to 'Kamoshida''s confession.

The whole princess Ann clone thing freaks me out so fucking much that I’m not dealing with it. edit: cancelled, clone matt is still happening.

Q: Does Matt get a suit like Ann’s? ;)  
A: I watched dark house and I liked Matt’s outfit in that. It’ll be similar, maybe with a jacket. So no, ~~you kinky fucks.~~

Q: What about Ryuji’s abusive childhood?  
A: It won’t be mentioned unless I get into a position where I need to mention it. 'Kamoshida' breaking Rich's leg, though, that will be discussed. **All the cast’s parents names will be changed, they’re fictional and not the acftual parents at all, not even based on them.**

Q: You joked on your twitter about putting Misha as Morgana, and then said you’d put Scout…  
A: At the time I am writing this, Scout hasn’t responded yet (I sent her an anon asking if she’d be alright with it). I read a fic with fans in it and I feel like it’d be really cool to have her as Morgana, I adore her art and personality! If she says no I’ll understand and either put myself as Morgana (HAH) or just leave Morgana as Morgana. I’m aware how dangerous self inserts are, though. Edit : She said yes! http://consulting-cannibal.tumblr.com/post/163879965611/are-you-doing-gishwhes

Misha being Akechi sounds a lot more fun to write.

Q: DOES ROB DIE PLEASE DONT NO NO NO NO  
A: This fic will go to the good ending of the game! No Goro killing Akira in the interrogation room, don’t you worry!

Q: Please don’t get us hyped, Chuck. You usually delete all your fics.  
A: I’ll put this on hiatus if I’m mentally drained/during nanowrimo, don’t worry! I wouldn’t message a popular member of the fandom if I wasn’t confident in this.

Q: What ages?  
A: 16. (ive deleted the underage tag as its usualy used for works that include explicit sexual content involving a minor and this isnt explicit) 

Q: But...the romance paths… ;)  
A: Why the fuck they’d let you date a teacher AND a school nurse but GOD FORBID you date a male student in this game I don’t know, but as I said earlier, no ships.

I’ll probably end up adding more details later, but at the moment this is the plan. The main characters have been decided, but minor characters will be decided later.

I may get location details incorrect! I unfortunately don't live in America. Also please let me know if I make a mistake regarding the plot of persona! I'm forgetful.

My twitter is @stvrktony!


	2. >Start from the very beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Osric is younger. He's 15.  
> -The dialogue is gonna be very mixed up, but no one's identity is actually revealed in the first part, and I wanted to keep it that way.  
> -yes i know 'trickster'

T̗̪͇̲̬h̬̯̼͎̘͙̼e͎͍̹͕ͅ ̠͍̖̱͔̻w̮̥̯or̤͙l̗̺͈d̝̣̜̯̱̟ͅ ̱̦̭i̝̘̥͕s̙͓ ̮͇͕͕̮̲͓n͙̠o̟̞̹̬t̙̘ ̻̰̲͇a̦̯̞ͅs̺̫̬̫͇ ͔͙̜̗͖i̱̫t͚ ̖sh͈o͚̮͈͓̘u̠͇̺̙ͅl͙̱͚͔͍͍͎d̪̣͉͍ ͍b̗̝̬̤͖̼e.͙̘ ͎͈̘  
̣I̩̞̩̺̖t̞͙̞̹̝̫͎'s̙ ͎fi̭̣ḽ̩͓͓̖ͅl̞͇̩̦͉e͍͙̯͙̦̯͚d̗̞̞̬͚͈ ̩̣͔̭̫̤w͚i̭th̰̼̘ ̘͇͕͍̠̹̠d̘̹͖ͅisṯ̻̖̥̤̯͍o͉̼͔͍͔̪r͔̙̣̪̗ͅt̙̩̞͉ͅi̝̩o̩̻̦n͚̻͖̳,̜̤̺͕̣̬̱ ̮a̠̮̻̞̮̯̰n̞͈̘͖d͚͚̺̤ ̫̣̱͚̲͎ͅ'͉r̺͈̹̦u̪͈̭̪̞i͓͔̳n' c̖͍̣͓͉̮a͇͕͕̝̺n͇̥̦̺ͅ ̱̥̹͔n̫͈̬̭̳͈̙ọ̲̟̥̝̟̭ ̩̠̦̦̪̮̼lo̺n̼̬̫̙ͅg̫̪̱e͙̘̬͙̞͇ͅr͕ ̝̗̪̱̬̤͎b̩e͓̖ ̭̻̗̯̞̹̲a̦̙͎v͖͕͙͙o̞͓i̝̮d̦̟e͚̰̯̱̞̼ͅd͕̦.̘ ̠͖̼  
͎Ṱ̻͈h̺̗͚͚o̱͓̬̫̪̠̪s̜͓̠̱̘̯̙e̺̱̪͎͇̩̭ ͙̫̪͕̲ͅw̮͉̩h̪o̯̟ ̖o̘̣̣̹̬̜p͓̬̲po̘͖s̼̝͍e̬̻͚̬ ̪̩̠͉͔f͍a̪̘̦̗t͇͇̯̳̼ḛ̥͙ͅ ̘̬̭an͚͓̱͉ͅd͓͙͓͙̦ ̯d̰̞̟͙̞̯̫e̝s̲͈̞͔͕͖i͖͕̝͎͈re͔̯ ̮c͎h͉̱̼̲ḁ̜n͕g̳͈̤͈ͅe͇͖.̫̘.̺̙̱̠.̟̣̞ ͔̟̥͕  
͕͎̺̱̭F̝r͓̤o̘̙̗̰̜̻m̬̖̠̬̟̣ͅ ͚t̤̹̦̩̳im̰̣̖̲͓ͅͅḛ͍͎ ̤̼t̮̝̲͓̦͎o͈̭̼͉ ̤̭̱̗t͓̖̜͓i̝̟̣̫͕̙̫m̞e̼̟̘,̠͚̱̖ ̘̺̝t̻̩̖̺̭h͈e̠͍̘y̱̗ w̬̥e͍̫r͎̤̬̖e͍̪͎̞ ̗̬͔̙͇r̟̙̱̫͇̰ḛf̪ͅe̬͉͖rr͕͍̺̣͓͔̹e͎̦̦͙͍̱̮d̠ ͈̲̜̪̗͈to̯̩̳̘̲ ̱̮͙̯a͔̲̗s͚ ̗͚T̗ṛ͙̱i̹̫͉̦̯̲̫c͇k̠̭͈̖s̮̮͖t̖̭̜̠̬̯e̩̟̖r̩̪̫̩͍͍s͙̠.̥ ̦̟̟̰͔͉  
Yo̹͇̳̖͙̣̺u̦̖͍̲̞̙̗ ͎a̱̮̲͈̘r̲̥͇e̲̦͇ ̤̬ț̞̳͖̤͖ͅẖ̪e̼̙̯͈̟͓ ̣̺͎̖͉͖̯Tri̫̯͍c͔̜͔̼k̪̲̲s̙̗̬̜t̮e̼̮̭̪̙r̗̫͙̙.͔̗̲ ̖̹̣̜̫  
̺̝ͅN̯̻o̺ͅw̪̬̗̬̜ ͕̮̜̝̭̜ͅi̬͎s̥̳ ͚̱͍̪̮ͅt͎̮͇̰he ̘̳ṱi̥̪̪̟̼̫̭m̦̦e͍ ͕͚̦̬̠̲t̥͉̘͍ͅo̹̙̲̥ ̹̮ṟ͔i͇̻̠se͖̖̙̫̥ ͍͍̹̰͚͚̞a̲̳͎̮̫g̼͈a͔̹i̯̣̜͎̯n̙͙̗̗s̹͕͚t͙ ̪̥͕̹th͈͕̘̥̝͙e͇͇͚ͅ ͇͍̮̮͖̜a̗̙͎̝̲͕̥b̮̜͈͕̣y̫̮s͖s̪͍̼̫̗̲̙ ͚o͖͎f̭̜ͅ ̺̘͚͎͕̰d̤̩̹̙̬̲ị̦̞s̠t̯͈͉̯̘̳̝o̝̜̘̝̰͍r͓̯̝̦ṱ̯i̟o̥͓͈͙n.̯̩  
---  
  
The alarms in the casino began ringing. Everyone looked up from their games, confused. People started shoving past in panic, trying to get out. A woman caught sight of a shadow jumping from one side to the other above her, but it was too quick to see exactly what it was. A man noticed the same shadow. “Someone’s there!” He yelped in urgency. Three men entered, obviously agents from some sort of federal agency. They looked around for the source of the ruckus.

“Hey, look! Up there!” The man yelled out again, pointing up to a chandelier. A man with curly dark hair, blue eyes obscured by a black and white mask, and a long black coat, a grey jacket underneath. A briefcase held by red gloves.

“He’s here. Move in immediately.” One of the men in the suits tapped the earpiece in his ear. They headed forward. The man simply grinned and jumped onto a bunch of hexagonal pillars.

“Good! Now get running!” An excited voice echoed through his earpiece.

“This is our only chance!” A panicked voice added.

“Stay calm! You can get away now!” Another chimed in. “We’ll retrieve the briefcase on our end.” A security guard’s radioed message cut into their conversation. “Huh? What was that?”

“Don’t worry about us! Just concentrate on getting away!” The excited voice was worried now. He jumped from different glass pieces hanging from the ceiling, making his way to an exit. “But I have to say, showing yourself up above earlier was a pretty good move. Good work as always, Joker.”

“I bet Skull wouldn’t pull it off that smoothly.” A giggle was cut off by a sudden yell.

“There he is!” The suits blocked the exit.

“Just run! Get out of there!” He nodded and headed the other way.

“Looks like the enemy’s focus is on him. We can get away.”

“Y’all remember where we’re meeting up, right?” A texan voice chirped in.

“No worries. I’ll guide you all.” The youngest replied. He just continued running until the suits blocked his path.

“Stop right there!” They suddenly started shaking until the slumped, masks on their faces. Great.

“Go get em, Joker!” He grinned, running towards one of the suits, ripping the mask off and releasing the monster inside.

“He isn’t a threat. Go get em Joker!” The techie yelled. Joker grabbed the gun from his side and shot multiple times, harming the monster. The monster yelled and burned him in response. He fell back a bit, recovering from the attack. He couldn’t do this on his own.

“Persona!” He yelled. Arsene was ready. He used the Eiagon attack, and the enemy was gone in seconds.

“All right! Pull out before their backup gets here!” Joker was suddenly knocked back as another guard showed up, he jumped up onto the light, and then over the railing on the next floor.

“Joker! Behind you! Go through that door!” Joker ran through the exithall. He came to a window, seeing another agent not noticng him.

“Damnit, where did they go?” He whispered. Joker turned around and saw another agent ahead, and hid behind the table. Soon the unsuspecting man ran past him, and he ran up the stairs. He came up to a control room, and listened in.

“He’s not alone! Find them and kill them all!” So Joker just kept running. Until he hit a wooden railing.

“What’s wrong?”

  
“The exit was cut off after the commotion, damnit!”

“Over there!” Joker turned towards the sound. “There’s nowhere to run!” The men yelled. Joker just smirked.

Incorrect.

He leapt over the railing and ran across on the part of the wall that stuck out, the beams. He ran until he reached the window, guns aimed at him. He wasn’t afraid. He had a plan.

“Seeya.”

He jumped through the glass, smashing through and falling gracefully. Screams from the shocked people inside echoed.

“What a showoff. You’re so reckless, you know that?” He landed and shook off the glass. He barely had any time to recover before lights shone on him.

“Enemies? Here? It can’t be!”

“Joker, can you handle this?” No, he couldn’t. He found a ladder and jumped up, grabbing it and climbing up. He looked up.

Shiiiiiiiit.

The butt of a gun met his head and he lost his balance, falling to the ground, surrounded. They pinned his hands behind his back. “Stop struggling! Suspect secure!”

“Didn’t expect to find some kid. You have your teammate to thank for this.” The man grabbed his head, forcing him to look up. “You were sold out.”

What?

By who?

“Suspect confirmed! Cuff him!”  
-  
He woke up to cold water.

“No dozing off.” A voice growled. He fought against the cuffs. “Oh give it up!” A kick to the stomach knocked him off the chair and onto the floor. “You gonna cooperate? Or do you want another shot?”

He looked down at the syringe at the other side of the room, and then over to the camera desperately. The man unfortunately noticed. “What about the camera? You thinking it can be used as video evidence?” He didn’t answer. Another kick. He wheezed as the man read out his crimes. “To think all those were lead by a punk like this.”

  
He felt way too hazy for any of this to process.

“You should know your place.” The cuffs were undone roughly. He was passed a pen and a board. “Sign this. It’s a confession under your name. Don’t expect to get out of here in one piece.” He shivered and wrote his name down silently.

R-O-B-E-R-T B-E-N-E-D-I-C-T

\--  
“Excuse me, but this area’s off.” The detective outside the interrogation room stopped the woman in her path.

“I’m Kim from the public prosecutor’s office.” She explained.

“What buisness do you have here?” The detective eyed her in suspicion.

“Just let me through. I need to confirm something with the suspect.” She replied, frustrated. Why couldn't they just let her through? It was her case, damnit.

“This case isn’t even in your hands anymore.”

“Are you Kim Rhodes?” Another detective walked over. “There’s a call waiting for you.” Just then, her phone rung.

“I thought I told you to stand by.” The man on the other line sounded tired.

“Excuse me, I should be allowed in interrogation.” Kim snapped back.

“I knew you’d bring it up.” He sighed again. “That’s why I called you.”

“I’m not gonna be convinced until I actually hear it.”

Yet another sigh. “Good luck to you, then” He hung up, and the second detective spoke up again.

“Your time will be cut short to keep you safe. We don’t know his methods yet.” She gave them an uncertain look, before nodding.

“I understand.” She replied, before heading into the interrogation room, sitting down.She was surprised. “I didn’t expect it’d be you. You’ll be answering my questions this time.” She looked to the floor, seeing the syringe just lying there. She felt sick. He was a kid. A criminal, but a sixteen year old no less. “Those bastards…” She looked up. She needed to check. “Can you hear me? You’ve been through a lot. Anything can happen here, and I can’t stop them. I need you to answer honestly. Why did you cause such a major incident? I don’t think it was a prank, but I need proof. I need the method.

“Why would you need to know?” His voice was quiet, he barely had any energy left.

“This isn’t about whether it can be used in court. As it’s my case, it’s information you need to tell me. You just proved your coherent.” He didn’t reply.

“When and where did you find out about that world?”

“How is it even possible to steal another’s heart?”

“Now, tell me everything.”

“Start from the very beginning.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Zalgo text:   
> The world is not as it should be.   
> It's filled with distortion, and 'ruin' can no longer be avoided.   
> Those who oppose fate and desire change...   
> From time to time, they were referred to as Tricksters.   
> You are the Trickster.   
> Now is the time to rise against the abyss of distortion.


	3. >The Velvet Room

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is 90% dialogue right now, and I'm sorry about that. It probably wont be when Rob meets Ryuji and Matt.

"...You are held captive. A prisoner of fate to a future that has been sealed in advance. This is truly an unjust game... Your chances of winning are almost none. But if my voice is reaching you, there may yet be a possibility open to you... ...I beg you. Please overcome this game... and save the world... The key to victory lies within the memories of your bonds—the truth that you and your friends grasped. It all began that day... when the game was started half a year ago... For the sake of your world's future... as well as your own... you must remember..."

-

(Everything that takes place now is Rob’s confession to Kim, until stated otherwise.)

-

“Thank you for riding with us today. We will be arriving shortly. Please transfer here for all subway lines. The doors to your left will open.” 

 

To say Rob was nervous was an understatement. He didn’t want to be here. He remembered that night, walking through the town at night to get some food when he heard the woman screaming for help.

 

He’d pushed the guy off her. That was his crime.

 

He’d stopped a woman from getting raped and he was the one who was arrested that night. It was so unjust-

 

“What, are you for real?” He was cut out of his thoughts by two girls chatting. “A mental shutdown?” He didn’t know why he was listening, he didn’t even know what they were refering to.

 

“It’s the truth!” The first girl replied.

 

“To a person though? They’ve got to be joking.” The second girl laughed. “It’s crazy how super into that occult stuff you are.”

  
Rob looked to the floor.

\--

When he got off the train, he stepped foot into a loud city. He could barely hear himself think. He opened his phone and tried to use the map to navigate. It was difficult to focus, though, with all the talking going on around him. The screen suddenly stopped, and a red eye icon appeared on the screen.

 

He’d never seen it before.

 

He needed the map, so he clicked the icon, trying to move it out of the way. It didn’t budge. He tapped it again. It wasn’t responding at all. Great. The last thing he needed today was for his phone to freeze. It was then that he heard the talking slowing down until it was silent. Not quiet, literally silent. He looked up.

 

Everyone was frozen in place. He looked around, confused, trying to figure out what was going on. He felt himself getting more and more anxious. He turned his head to the right and saw something...strange.

 

It was blue smoke. The wisps of blue soon joined together to create...what was that? Rob couldn’t look away, it was like he was stuck just like everyone else. Orange broke through the colder colour to reveal  eyes and a terrifying grin. Something else, a face, flashed before Rob’s eyes. It looked just like him, but...his eyes were gold.

 

He snapped out of it, and everyone was moving again, like nothing had happened at all. He shook his head, thinking maybe he’d just been daydreaming. The journey had left him very tired, it wouldn’t be surprising if his mind had just fallen asleep for a few seconds. The icon showed up again, but it was smaller. Rob deleted it and left it at that.

-

He took another train to the small town he was staying in. Once he got off the train, he headed to the backstreets. He couldn’t figure out where he was supposed to go, so he asked for some directions from people, showing them the info he’d been given about where he would be staying.

 

He headed to the house and no one was there. Maybe it’s the wrong place, he thought, before a delivery man arrived at the door.

 

“Looks like Mark isn’t home right now. Probably in the cafe. Leblanc’s in the back alley so I’ll do the other deliveries first.” Great. He was in the wrong place. He headed down to the back alley, looking around until he found Leblanc, and headed inside.

 

There were only three people there. The elderly couple discussed a road incident that had happened earlier that day. The other man looked up, seeing Rob.

 

“Ah, I forgot that was today.” The british man stood up from his seat.

 

“We’ll be going now.” The elderly man said. “The payment’s on the table.” 

 

“Thanks for stopping by.” The brit replied. 

 

“This place is in a back alley, so there’s no worry of a car crashing here.” The other man looked confused.

 

“...A what now?” Rob was paying attention.

 

“Well, those rampage accidents have been happening lately. I hope there won’t be any here, though.”

 

“I’m not concerned by it.” But Rob was. This actually worried him.

“We’ll see you next time.” The older man laughed and headed out with his wife.

 

“Four hours they spent in here.” The man sighed, before turning his head. “So you’re Robert?”

 

“Uh...yeah. Do you know where Mark Sheppard is?” He asked, nervous, not wanting to make a bad impression.

 

“I’m Mark Sheppard. You’ll be under my custody over the next year. I was wondering who would show up. You’re the one, huh?” Rob nodded. “A customer of mine knows your parents. It doesn’t matter, though, don’t worry. Follow me.” Rob followed him up the stairs. “This is your room. I’ll give you sheets for the bed.” He turned to the teen. “You wanna say something?”

 

“...It’s a big room.” He replied. He wasn’t used to this much space. He wasn’t sure how to fee about it.

 

“You can move stuff around.” was his only response. “I’ll be leaving after I lock up each day. You’ll be here alone at night, but don’t do anything stupid. So, I’ve got the gist of your situation. You protected a woman from being assaulted, the assaulter got injured and sued you, right?” He sighed. “Then you got expelled from high school, and your parents approved your move here. Just behave yourself for the year, okay? If nothing happens your probation will be lifted. If something happens you’ll be sent to juvie. We’re going to Winchester tomorrow.”

 

“Winchester?”

 

“Winchester Academy. You’ll be at school there. We’ll introduce ourselves to the staff. Your luggage is in the corner.” He headed back downstairs.

 

-

Once he’d cleaned up and gotten changed into more comfy clothes, it was very late. Mark came back upstairs.

 

“Not bad.” He said. “I guess it’s only natural to keep your room tidy. You should probably head to sleep, it’s pretty late. I’m going to close up shop.”

-

Rob kept thinking about what had happened for him to get here. He also thought back to the icon on his phone.

 

“I don’t know how it got there…” it was still there. When he deleted it earlier, all that got deleted was the thumbnail. He clicked it. He was suddenly hit by a wave of sleepiness. He fell asleep.

\--

Rob woke up again quickly, but he wasn’t in his room. He sat up, finding chains around his wrists. He tried to figure out what was going on. He sat up and heard a chuckle, turning towards it. Two short girls with eyepatches and uniforms stood in front of the cell. He stepped forward, finding a ball and chain attatched to his leg. He still made the effort to move forward, trying to reach towards the cell door and figure out what was going on. A very odd looking man with grey hair looked up from his desk with an evil grin.

  
“Trickster. Welcome to my velvet room.”

\--

“So you’ve come to, inmate!” Girl 1 yapped. “The you in reality is still asleep. This is a dream.”

 

“Stand up straight!” Girl 2 yelled.

 

“Welcome. I am delighted to make your aquaintance.” The man spoke. “This place is between dream and reality, mind and matter. Only those bound by a contract may enter. I am Igor. You’re here because I have important things to discuss with you.”

 

“...I-Important matters?”

 

“This is a surprise. This room reflects your heart. You’re a ‘prisoner’ of fate. Ruin awaits you.”

 

“Ruin?”

  
“I speak of the end of everything.” The man responded matter-of-factly. “You can oppose this fate, though. It involves you being rehabilitated to freedom. Only then you can avoid ruin.” 

 

“I-I don’t know what you’re on about!” He replied, fustrated and afraid.

 

“You didn’t decline. That is enough. I apologise for not introducing the others. To your right is Caroline(*) to your left is Justine. They are the Wardens. I’ll explain their roles at a different time.” He tapped his hand on the desk. “The night is waning. Remember this place, we will definetely meet again.”

 

“Times up!” Justine yelled. “Go back to sleep!”

-

S U N D A Y

 

Rob didn’t even know what his dream actually meant. It was all very confusing.

 

“You’re up, huh?” Mark came upstairs. “We better get going.”

-

“Just so we’re clear, you’ll be expelled if there’s any wrongdoing.” The principal warned. “Here is your teacher.” He gestured to the woman next to him.

  
“I’m Rachel Miner. Here’s your student id.” She pushed over the id and Rob picked it up. “Violations of the rules will send you to the guidance office. If you cause any problems, I won’t be able to help you.”

 

“You are responsible for all your actions.” The principal agreed.

 

“Why me?” Ms Miner sighed. “Weren’t there better candidates?”

 

“It was a sudden transfer.” The principal sighed. “Your class was the only one with an opening. We didn’t have much choice.” He turned to Mark. “Please keep a close eye on him outside school.” He nodded.

-   
“They’re treating you like a nuisance. I guess that’s what happens when you have a criminal record.” Mark sighed. “Your past follows you wherever you go, I guess.”

-

“What a troublesome situation, huh?” The taller man in the jersey muttered to Rachel as he almost passed her.

  
“I wish they hadn’t pushed that on me. I can’t handle a kid with a record.” She was so tired and slightly anxious.   
  


“Why would they even let some like that here?”

 

“The principal allowed it. Something about a good rep.”

 

“My volleyball team has contributed enough to our reputation.”

 

“That’s true.” She smiled.

 

“Be careful, alright?” He told her.

 

“I just don’t want him to come to school. Not something I should be saying as a teacher.”

 

“Well, I need to get back to practice.”

 

“The big match is coming up, right?”

 

“Yep. I guess I’ll see you later.” The man smiled and headed off.

-

**A train has derailed. The train driver could not explain what happened. No further comments were made. Police are still desperately searching for a motive. With all these accidents, the general public is in fear. Just what could be causing these incidents, and why?**

 

“They’re all linked, you think?” Kim just continued watching the screen, not responding, before turning away.

 

“I have another meeting to attend.” Kim headed out of the room and downstairs, where the student was already waiting for her.

 

“You wanted to see me? Is there a case?” Misha asked, curious.

 

“Not exactly. I need your opinion on something.” She answered. He just smiled in response.   
  


“Could we discuss it over sushi? You are making a student work late, after all.”

 

“Conveyor belt only.” The younger let out a sad sigh.

-

“I didn’t know there would be so much traffic.” Mark sighed. “Just head upstairs, there’s something I need to give to you.” The younger nodded and headed upstairs. Mark joined him a few minutes later.

 

“Write in this diary. I’m obligated to report on you.” Mark then went to answer a call, and Rob headed to bed.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter we'll have matt, ryuji and john's intros ! ! ! ! ! ! hope u wanna rip johns guts out as much as i do LOL
> 
> *Caroline is pronounced 'car-o-lean' in this case.


	4. >First Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was going to be a lot longer, and the fifth chapter will probably be uploaded shortly. I just got really carried away.
> 
> -At the moment this caters to the persona canon and a lot of the plot but that will change later. Things that pissed me off in Persona 5 will probably be changed, mainly so the characters don't seem so ooc (Rich cares about what Matt is going through more than Ryuji cares about Takamaki, Rich isn't an asshole to Scout like Ryuji is an asshole to Morgana, etc)  
> \- I've taken /off/ the underage tag, but I might end up adding it again despite the fact nothing is explicit  
> -I'm considering rating this mature simply because Persona is a 16+ game and I want to be careful. Is that a good idea?  
> \- Persona is a text heavy game. I'll try my best to not make this all dialogue, I know it's looking rather crappy right now, but it is rather difficult.  
> -im just gonna apologise in advance for the next part...

When Rob got up, he got ready for school.

He was really nervous. Starting a new school, especially with a criminal record, was pretty scary. He just hoped he wouldn’t get lost. He headed downstairs for breakfast.

“Just make sure to eat it quickly, you don’t have too much time.” Mark told him. He did so and headed out. He flipped the sign so it said ‘OPEN’ as he left.  
-  
Rob took a deep breath as he stepped off the train. It had been very loud and crammed on there, and he wasn’t looking forward to taking it again. Because the line he was supposed to take was effected by the train crash, he took a different line instead.

He didn’t expect it to start raining when he got outside. He had a while, so he hid under the shelter, out of the way of the rain. The icon came up on his phone again, and it frustrated him. He didn’t know what any of it meant, and it was worrying him. He suddenly became aware of someone standing next to him.

He was wearing grey jeans and a red hoodie that obscured his face until he pulled the hood down to reveal raven hair and green eyes. He seemed to be waiting for something. The boy must have noticed him staring, because he looked over and smiled before looking forward again. A car drove up a few minutes later, the driver unwinding the window.

“You want me to give you a ride to school? You’ll be late.”

“...Sure.” The boy whispered, getting in the car. The driver looked up at Rob.

“You need a lift too?”

“No, I’m fine.” He smiled awkwardly. As the window went back up, Rob noticed the look in the boy’s eyes. It looked like he’d rather be anywhere else. It made Rob feel like something was going on, something bad. He couldn’t put his finger on what it was.

A shorter male with brownish blonde hair and a green coat ran up just as the car drove off. He didn’t get to it in time. “Damnit! The perv…” He sighed in defeat.

“What perv?” Rob whispered to himself, not knowing the boy had heard him. Soon, golden brown eyes were looking at him accusingly.

“Don’t even think about telling Smith I called him that.” He growled quietly.

“I don’t even know who the guy is.” The boy looked confused.

“...In the car just now! That was Smith!” Rob knew what he meant. The old guy and the boy with the green eyes. “He does what he wants, like he’s the king of some castle.”

“Castle?” Rob tilted his head.

“It’s just a saying.” The boy smiled, before the conversation actually set in. “You really don’t know Smith, huh?”

“I’m new here.”

  
“That explains a lot actually.” The boy sighed. “We better hurry up or we’ll be late.” They both started walking when Rob felt a pain in his head. It burnt. By the looks of it Rich felt the same...thing…?

“Ugh, my head hurts. I just want school to be over already.”  
-  
(Cut back to Kim and Rob)

“You know about the psychotic breakdown incidents, right?”

“What does that mean?” Rob was confused on what Kim meant. She sighed in frustration. This kid wasn’t making it easy for himself.

“One of the victims was a teacher of yours. You remember, right?”

“....”

“You transferred to Winchester Academy. What happened around that time?”  
-  
They headed through a narrow alley, the rain still heavy. Rob felt uneasy, but still continued walking. He heard something and looked back, but assumed his mind was playing tricks on him.

“What?!” He heard the boy exclaim. He headed forward and saw a huge castle. It didn’t look like it belonged their at all. “We didn’t come the wrong way, I know we didn’t!” He looked over to Rob. “I guess we’ll just have to ask what happened.”

They walked in, looking around. “That’s weird.” The boy whispered. “This should be the school. There was a sign for the school, wasn’t there?” Rob nodded. “What’s goin’ on?”

A fully armed knight came out of nowhere and the boy jumped back. “God, that scared me. So….who are you? A student? Cool costume, by the way.” The knight didn’t answer. “....Say somethin’, c’mon.” Another knight joined him. “....What?”

“W-What…” Rob stepped back, panicking.

“I have no idea what’s happening but I think this shit might be real, so I think we’re best off running…” There was fear in his voice. They began to run but they were surrounded in minutes. “What’s up with these guys?!” He was knocked to the floor, Rob next to him, both terrified.

“Take them away!”

Everything went black.  
-  
“Hey.”

“Hey! Wake up!” Rob rubbed his eyes and sat up, seeing the boy sitting oppisite him. He looked around. They were in a cell. “You okay?”

“....I-I don’t know.”

  
“I see.” He looked up. “I guess this really isn’t a dream. What’s goin’ on?” He sounded frustrated and honestly, Rob couldn’t blame him. He walked up and knocked on the gates. “LET US OUT! I KNOW WE’RE NOT ALONE IN HERE!” No one replied. He sat down, defeated. “What is this place…” He looked over to Rob, whose eyes were fixed on the ground. “You sure you’re okay?”

“Y-Yeah! I’m…I’m just fine-” He was cut off by a scream from far away. Both boys stood up and looked through the bars, the screams continuing. The boys eyes widened.

“...nononononono…” He whispered. “You’ve gotta be kidding…We’ve gotta find a way to escape.” But they barely had time to look around the dark, empty cell, before the guards returned.

“Your crime is ‘unlawful entry.’ Your punishment is death.”

The boy looked like he’d seen a ghost. “Say what?”

“No one’s allowed to do as they please in my castle.” A man walked forward, a kings cape around him, his magenta boxers just visible in a slight gap inbetween the cape. The boy’s eyes widened.

“Is that you, Smith?”

“Smith?” Rob repeated, confused. He’d recognized the man, but his eyes were...different. They were gold.

“I thought it would just be some petty thef. I didn’t expect you, Speight. You haven’t learned your lesson from last time, have you?” He looked over to Rob. “Of course, you brought a friend with you.”

“This isn’t funny!” ‘Speight’ yelled.

“Is that how you speak to a king?” Smith growled. “Insulting me is another crime. Again, the punishment is death. I guess it’s time for an execution.” He turned to the guards. “Take him out.” The gates opened and both boys were lead out.

“Goddamnit…” Speight whispered, before running at one of the guards, pushing him over. He turned to Rob. “C’mon! Let’s get out of here!” But Rob was too scared to move. The next second the other male was knocked against the wall. “Just go! Get out of here!”

“Running away, are we? What a heartless friend.” Smith laughed.

“He ain’t a friend.” Speight gasped out, recovering from the attack, looking up to Rob. “Hurry up and go!” But Rob couldn’t move. He was fixed to the spot in fear.

“You’re too scared to run away…” Smith grinned. “I don’t have time for pathetic scum like this.” He turned to Speight. “I’ll focus on getting rid of this one.” The guards grabbed both of Speight’s hands, and Smith hit him in the stomach. He kept punching, yelling insults like ‘lowely scum’ and ‘useless pest’. He eventually fell to the floor. “Huh? Where’d your energy from earlier go?” The guards through him to the floor.”A peasant like you isn’t even worth beating. Let’s get this over and done with-”

“Stop it!” Rob yelled suddenly and Smith turned around, walking towards the other boy, scowling.

“Don’t tell me you don’t know who I am.” Rob tried to be strong as the man growled. “The look in your eyes irritates me.” He kicked Rob, who fell to the floor. He turned to the other guards. “Hold him there. It’s his turn next.”

  
Rob ran forward but was held back by the guards. He fought as much as he could, but he couldn’t get over to Smith. Smith let out a crazed laugh and Speight pressed himself into the wall. “I d-don’t wanna die..”

  
This is truly an unjust game...  
Your chances of winning are almost none.  
But if my voice is reaching you,  
there may yet be a possibility open to you…

Rob watched as the moth fluttered away, before a deep voice came out of nowhere.

“Are you simply going to watch?” The voice asked. Rob looked around, trying to figure out where it was coming from. “Are you forsaking him just to save yourself? Death awaits him if you do nothing.” Rob knew that, but there was nothing he could do. “Was your last desicion a mistake then?”

No.

No it wasn’t. The voice laughed. “Very well. I have heeded your resolve.” A shock went through Rob’s body and he gasped out in pain. “Vow to me…” Rob could barely breathe. “I am thou, thou art I…” Just more pain. Rob didn’t know what was happening, it just hurt his head so much. “Thou who art willing to perform all sacrilegious acts for thine own justice! Call upon my name, and release thy rage! Show the strength of thy will to ascertain all on thine own, though thou be chained to Hell itself!" He let out a final scream before his eyes met the floor and something snapped as he looked up.

“Execute him!” Smith told the knight holding Speight.

“That’s. Enough.” Rob’s voice caused the soldier to drop Speight, and Smith turned his head.

“What was that?” Smith growled as Speight tried to catch his breath, sliding to the floor. “You desire to be killed that much? Fine!” The guard’s shield made contact with his face, causing him to fall to the side, before he was held back against the wall by the two guards. He shut his eyes, defeated.

The swordsman raised his sword and Rob’s eyes opened again, a sudden powerful gust of air pushing everyone back. Rob’s vision went white for a few seconds. When he came to a few seconds later, he touched his face.

Something was on his face. Some sort of mask. He was hit with the sudden urge to take it off. He needed to get it off but it wouldn’t come off. Eventually he managed to claw it off with a scream, blood running down his face. He felt something take over, and he looked up to Smith with a grin as blue smoke engulfed his entire body. When the smoke died away, his clothes were completely different. Where he had previously been wearing a white sweater and a black cardigan, he was now wearing a black jacket and a grey undercoat. The mask was back, but he didn’t have the urge to rip it off this time. Behind him, surrounded by chains, stood the blue smoke creature he had seen before, coated in a red overcoat and a grey undercoat similar to Rob’s. He wore a top hat and had thin blue wings. His face was triangular in shape, with two long thin horns on his head.

He felt powerful.

He raised his hands and the demon behind him moved along with him, pushing the guards even further back, the sound of chain hitting the wall echoing. Smith managed to move away, terrified. Speight just looked up, eyes wide. “W-What the?”

-  
“I am the pillager of Twilight, Arsene!” The demon yelled.

“What...the…” Speight repeated, less alarmed, but still shocked. Rob had calmed down, looking down at his red gloves.

“I am the rebel’s soul that resides within you. If you so desire, I shall consider lending you my power to help you through this crisis.”

“Give me your power.” Rob whispered without hesitation, looking up to the demon again. He needed to get out of here.

“Very well.” Arsene smiled.

“Who are you?” Smith yelled. “Guards!” The guards got up. He pointed to Arsene. “Kill that one!” he boomed. The guards changed into small monsters wielding lanterns. “You’ll learn the true strength of my men!”

Rob pulled a sword he had been armed with during his transformation and held it at his side. He waited for guidance from Arsene.

“Detest the enemies before you. Change the animosity into power and release it!” Arsene commanded. Rob looked at an enemy and focused before calling out. “Arsene!” (*) Arsene understood and unleashed a power onto the enemy, injuring it.The enemies lashed out, hitting Rob in return.

“Use your blade.” Arsene suggested. He swung at the second enemy, weakening it once more. The battle dragged on until the enemies were gone. Rob felt stronger after that battle.

“What was that just now?” Speight was just confused now.

“You...little…” Smith was quickly knocked over into the cell.

“Hah!” Speight gave a small laugh in victory. He grabbed the keys from the floor, locking the cell with Smith inside.

“Damn you!” The older man yelled. Speight turned back to Rob.

“Now....really...what was that?” He asked. “And...your clothes-” Before he could finish, Rob was surrounded by light, changing back to normal. “Woah…” They both jumped as Smith hit the bars of the cell.

“You bastards!” He growled.

“Let’s scram.” Speight whispered. “Lead the way.” They ran towards a gate, which was locked. Speight then noticed a broken bridge. “We could probably jump over that.” Rob agreed and they leapt over. They followed a path until they found an open cell with a tunnel, which they decided to go through. They looked around. Guards emerged from the other side. “Hide! Quick!” They hid, luckily not being noticed by the guards. “They’re looking for us. We’ve gotta get away quick.” Rob noticed a stairway, and they both headed up until they saw a door. “Does this lead to an exit?” They burst through the door.

“You’ve gotta be kidding!” It was just another part of the castle. They walked around, before hearing someone yelling. They looked over the water, seeing a boy in a cage.

“...Is he ok?” Speight felt himself getting nervous. “Why is there so many cells? And of course the only bridge is up.” They headed down the path until they reached a dead end.

“Hey! You there!” A voice yelped. “You two!” They turned around. Inside a cell was a small cat looking creature with brown fur surrounded by paper and pencils. “You guys aren’t guards! Can you help me get out? The key’s right there!”

“We wanna get out of here as much as you do! How do we know we can trust you, anyway?” Speight replied.

“I’m locked in here too! Why would I be your enemy?”

“...Are you a cat?” Rob tilted his head.

“I’m not!” It yelled back in frustration. Speight heard the guards approaching.

“They’re gonna catch up to us.” He whispered, panic evident in his voice again. They were running out of options. Speight checked his phone. “There isn’t any service. There’s gotta be a way out of here.” The creature’s ears perked up.

“I know where the exit is. Let me our and I’ll show you.” It told them. “You don’t wanna get caught, do you?”

  
“...You can really help us?” Rob replied.

“I can!”

  
“I don’t think this is right.” Speight sideeyed the ‘cat’.

“If you guys think you can get out on your own, be my guest!”

“There’s literally nothing else we can do…” The sound of the guards got louder, and Speight quickly turned back to the creature. “You’re not messing with us?”

“They’ll catch you if you keep dragging this on!” was the only reply. Speight sighed and let the creature out. “Now where’s the exit, cat?” He said, forgetting what the creature had said earlier.

“I am not a cat! I am Scout!”

“Okay, sorry. Just get us out of here.”

“Follow me and stay quiet.” They did as Scout said. Scout started lowering the bridge by pressing on the statue nearby, and they walked across. They ran into a guard and Speight jumped back.

“S-Shit!”

  
“Don’t worry.” Scout turned to Rob, who had transformed back. “You can fight too? Good. Zorro!” Scout yelled, and a demon similar to Arsene appeared. It carried a fencing sword.

“You’ve got one of those things too?” But Speight wasn’t given an answer, as Scout and Rob just went straight into battle with the monsters that had appeared.

“They’re getting more and more serious each time.” Scout explained after the battle was over. “That just makes things difficult.” Scout turned to Rob. “That wasn’t bad! Your persona’s pretty powerful.”

  
“What’s a persona?” Speight asked. “Are they those demon things?”

  
“The ones that get activated after we rip off our masks, yes.” Scout nodded. Rob turned back to normal again. “It shouldn’t change quite like that, but that’ll probably change.”

“It still doesn’t make sense.”

“Of course it doesn’t make sense….ugh….what’s your name-”

“Rich.” The boy replied. Ah, that made things easier.

“We don’t have time.” Scout cut through the sudden silence. “We need to go. The exit isn’t far away, luckily.” Scout lead the way. Rich suddenly stopped by a cell, recognizing the uniform on the prisoner. “I said we don’t have-” The guards caught up again.

“There’s only one way out of this.” Rob sighed, ripping the mask off again.

“Good idea!” Scout summoned Zorro.  
-  
After the fight, they headed across the next drawbridge and kept following Scout to the exit. “We’re here!”

  
“Finally!” Rich tried to open the door. “...Not opening.”

“Wrong way.” Scout ran to another area, and the others followed.

“How are we supposed to get through here?”

“There’s a vent.” Rich saw the vent Scout was talking about, and removed the mesh covering it. “Shit, they didn’t hear that, did they?”

“It doesn’t matter! You need to get out of here!”

  
“What about you?” Rich was confused.

“I have something to do. We’ll meet again, though.”

“Thanks.” Rob smiled, before heading out through the vent.


	5. >skull

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> god writing that bit abt cognitive!matt was awful for me, i hate smith so much. luckily he doesnt show up much more
> 
> -just a little note, 'john smith' is a 'cliche name' (a super common name) because this guy really doesnt deserve a proper one and i didnt want to call him 'john doe'. this isnt referencing drwho in any way. (i love ten and i would not do this shit to him)  
> -

 

“You have returned to the real world. Welcome back.” A voice from Rob’s phone spoke suddenly. The boys looked around them.   
  


 

“We made it!” Rich yelled, exhausted and excited. “That was scary. I don’t know what to make of it all. The castle with Smith and that weird cat…I don’t know what’s going on-”   
  
“Are you two students of Winchester?” A police officer walked up. “Cutting classes, huh?”   
  
“No! We were trying to get to school and we got stuck in this castle!” Rich wondered afterwards why he thought saying that was a good idea. The police officer sighed.   
  
“Hand me your bag. You better not be doing any drugs.”    
  
“What?!”   
  
“Are you his friend?” The officer asked Rob.   
  
“Y-Yeah, I guess.”   
  
“Then go with him to school.” The police officer stated blankly.   
  
“I don’t know what’s going on!” Rich yelled.   
  
“I passed Winchester. There was nothing out of the ordinary.” The police officer replied. “Do you want us to contact the school?” Rob turned to Rich.   
  
“I think we should go.”    
  
“Not exactly what I meant, but okay.” The other boy muttered.   
\--   
“We came the same way! How-”   
  
“That’s what I was going to ask you.” An angry counsellor cut Rich off. “We just recieved a call from the police”   
  
“Damnit.” Rich whispered.    
  
“Where were you?”   
  
“A castle?” Rich had no idea why he kept saying that, knowing no one would believe him.   
  
“So you’re not going to be honest…”   
  
“What’s this about a castle?” Another teacher approached.   
  
“Smith?”   
  
“You seem pretty carefree, Speight. A difference from when you did morning practice for the track team.”   
  
“Shut up! You’re the reason I-”   
  
“Don’t speak to Mr Smith like that! Are you trying to get expelled! You’ll have to explain yourself. Follow me.” The counsellor growled.   
  
“All of this is bullshit!”   
  
“I was inconsiderate too. We’re both to blame.” Mr Smith replied.   
  
“If you insist.” The counsellor sighed. “But you’re still coming with me. You’re unexplainbly late.”    
  
“Fine.” Rich looked to the floor. Smith turned to Rob.   
  
“You’re the transfer student, aren’t you? Rob Benedict?” He asked. Rob nodded.  Rich just walked away. Smith tilted his head. “Have we met?”   
  
Think, quickly! “You gave a student a lift to school.”   
  
  
“Ah, yes! I remember. I’ll overlook this for today.” His tone changed. “You’ll be expelled if you cause trouble. Got it?”   
  
“Y-Yeah.”   
  
“Head to the faculty office. Ms Miner is waiting for you.”   
-   
“It’s lunchtime. What took you so long?” Ms Miner was concerned. “And you were with Richard Speight?”   
  
“...You know of him?” Rob replied, curious.   
  
“He’s trouble, I’ll give you that. He wasn’t like that ages ago…” She sighed. “Break’s almost over. I’ll have you introduce yourself when class starts up again. Follow me. Also, be serious about introducing yourself.”   
-   
“Settle down everyone. I’d like to introduce a transfer student: Rob Benedict. Today we had him attend from the afternoon on because he wasn’t feeling well. Okay, say something to the class.”   
  
“...Hi.” He whispered.   
  
“He seems quiet.” A student whispered.   
  
“He was arrested for attacking someone, right?” Another student chimed in, adding in another rumour.   
  
“Take your seat over there.” Ms Miner pointed to a seat. Rob walked over.   
  
“Lies.” A familar voice whispered. Rob turned his head and saw the green eyed boy from the morning.   
  
“You’re…the boy from this morning.” Rob didn’t realise he’d said it out loud until he saw the boy’s eyes meet the desk as he let out a quiet sigh. The whispers from students started up again.   
  
“Did you hear that? They know eachother!”   
  
“Did he hit on him?”   
  
  
“That means he’s cheating on mr Smith!”   
  
“Then again, this is Matt we’re talking about…”   
  
“That side of the room is awful.”   
  
Ms Miner gave out some notices. Rob couldn’t stop thinking about the green eyed boy. When class ended, Rich met him outside.   
  
“Meet me on the rooftop.”   
-   
“Ah, you’re here!” Rich said when Rob finally arrived. “I’m sure Ms Miner already gave you that speech about me.”   
  
“Yeah.” Rob sighed.   
  
“...What was that earlier? The castle and everything?”   
  
“I’m not sure.”   
  
  
“Me either, but you certainly saved my ass.” He laughed. “Thanks, Rob.” He looked down. “I don’t know if you know yet, but there’s bad rumours about Smith. No one talks up to him though. The way he acted like King of that castle felt real. I don’t know if we can go back there...that’s all I really had to say.” He smiled. “We’re pretty similar. I think we’ll be good pals.” He shook Rob’s hand. “I’m Richard Speight. I’ll talk to you if I see you again.” He walked off.   
-   
Rob was panicking as he headed home.   
  
“You were late today.”   
  
  
“I-It was an accident, sorry…”   
  
“Just don’t get in any more trouble, okay? You better get to bed.”   
-   
He woke in the velvet room again. “Our master wishes to speak with you.”   
  
“You’ve awakened to your powers.” Igor grinned. “You will be training the power of your persona, of which you have awoken to. They’re a mask of the heart, if you will. You know of the metaverse navigator, yes? It will help you go between reality and palaces.”   
  
“...Navigator?”   
  
“It’s a gift. Should others join you, I will grant it to them too.” Rob thought of Rich when Igor said that. That meant...Kamoshida’s castle? Was that a ‘palace’?   
  
“It’s time!” Caroline yelped. Rob headed back to sleep   
-   
Rob thought about his dream as he headed to school that day. The first class was about society, but Rob couldn’t stop thinking. The dream, the castle, the boy with the green eyes, Rich…   
  
“Rob!” The teacher yelled out. “The soul consists of appetite, spirit, and…”   
  
“Logic.” He’d caught that bit.   
  
“Correct.” The teacher went on  to talk about the accidents that had been happening.   
-   
Rob walked out of class at the end just in time to see Smith coming up the stairs.   
  
“Hey, Matt!” Smith came up to the student who had walked out of the same classroom. “Would you like a lift home? The accidents are kinda troubling.”   
  
  
“I...I have to work on a project.” The green eyed boy explained.   
  
“Didn’t you say you weren’t feeling well?”    
  
“I’ve been really busy. I...I didn’t want to worry you, sir.”   
  
“You must be lonely. I’m sorry for keeping Lucy at practice so much. Also, watch yourself around the transfer student. He’s got a criminal record.”   
  
“Thanks.” The younger boy whispered. Rob saw that fear again.   
-   
“Hey.” Rich spoke to Rob as he walked out of school. “I had a night to think about it, and I...I can’t tell myself that castle was a dream. I know I can rely on you.”   
  
  
“What should we do?”   
  
“Try retracing our steps, I guess.”   
-   
They retraced their steps but couldn’t find the castle. They just ended up at the school’s entrance again. They kept walking back and forth but couldn’t figure out what they were doing wrong. Rich suddenly perked up.   
  
“Your app! You could probably find it in that navigation thing! Could I see your phone for a second?” Rob passed Rich his phone and after some searching he found the app. “Ok, let’s try using it.” He opened the app.    
  
“Smith...perv...castle…” The app whispered, and the sky began to change.    
  
“What the hell?” Rich looked around, confused. Rob felt anxious again. The world changed, and they were back at the castle. “I guess that everything that happened yesterday was real…Your clothes!” Rob looked down to see he had transformed again.   
  
“Don’t make a commotion!” A familiar voice whispered. It was Scout. “Why did you guys come back here? You barely escaped last time.” The catlike creature spoke up.   
  
“Is this place the school?”   
  
  
“Yep!” Scout replied.   
  
“But it’s a castle!” Rich replied, still not understanding.   
  
“To the ruler. I heard you call him ‘Smith.’ It’s how his disorted heart views the school.” Before Scout could explain any further, a scream was heard in the distance, and all three turned to face the sound, trying to figure out where it came from. “That must be one of the slaves captive here.”   
  
“This is freaky…” Rich whispered, stepping back.   
  
“He must have lost his temper after you escaped.”   
  
“Scout! Where are those voices coming from?” The boy had clear anger in his voice. He was obviously angry at what was happening to these kids.   
  
“I can guide you as long as Rob comes along with us.” Scout explained. Rob nodded, and they all headed forward. “Follow me.”   
-   
They headed through the vent they’d escaped through. The place still looked as creepy as it had yesterday. They followed Scout throughout, like they had before. They ran into a few guards on the way, but took care of it easily. They eventually reached a saferoom that Smith didn’t have much control over. Scout explained about how Smith’s castle was a palace. Rob remember that term from his dream in the velvet room.   
  
“All of this is happening because he sees the school as his castle.”   
  
“Son of a bitch.” Rich growled.    
  
“You must really hate this guy.” Scout whispered.   
  
“Hate doesn’t even begin to describe it.”   
  
“Don’t let your emotions get the better of you.”   
“I’m fed up off it all!” Rich sat down against the wall. “I mean- What are you?”   
  
  
“I’m a human!” Scout yelled, before calming down. “I lost my true form. I’m trying to figure out how to get back.”   
  
“This is like some sort of comic book…”   
  
“We need to hurry along.” They continued their path, revealing and fighting enemies along the way. They overheard some guards talking about the training room, so they decided that’s where they would go.   
\--   
When they reached the training room, they found guards beating up prisoners.   
  
“This is bullshit.”   
  
“I keep telling you to keep your voice down!”   
  
“This is messed up.”   
  
A prisoner walked up. “Just...leave us. There’s no point.”    
  
“I won’t let you stay in a place like this!”   
  
“There’s something I should have told you.” Scout whispered.  “They aren’t real. They’re made of Smith’s cognition. They’re different to the ones in the real world.” Scout jumped off the seat and looked through the prison bars. “This is awful, though. It must be what he thinks of them in the real world.”   
  
  
“...This happens in reality too?!”   
  
  
“It’s most probable.”   
  
“...I thought they were just rumours.” Rich stared at the floor. Rob’s mind wandered back to Matt and what Smith thought of him, if there was a ‘cognition’ of him here.   
  
“Damnit, if I could just take a photo as evidence...but it isn’t working.” He clicked the camera app, but no evail. Rob’s camera didn’t work either.    
  
“We need to head back.” Scout whispered. Rich tried to memorize the faces of the prisoners before moving on.   
-   
“The exit’s this way! Hurry!” They ran towards the exit, only to be stopped by guards and....   
  
“You fools again?” Smith rolled his eyes. “To think you’d come back here. You’re hopeless!” He mocked them.   
  
“The school isn’t your castle! I’ve memorized the faces of the prisoners here. Game’s over.” Rich replied, determined. He was gonna save those students, no matter what it took.   
  
“How far the star runner of the track team has fallen.”    
  
“What...what do you mean?”   
  
  
“I’m talking about the student that acted in violence and ended up causing the track team to disband. Sound familar?” Smith grinned, seeing anger just building up. “How do you think your teammates felt?”   
  
“Violence?” Rob was confused. He’d heard people saying Rich wasn’t a good rolemodel, but he hadn’t known why.   
  
“You just accompanied him without knowing? He betrayed his teammates and crushed their hopes and he’s still carefree.” The golden eyed man explained with a grin.   
  
“You know that isn’t true!” Rich yelled in response.    
  
“Just kill then all.” Smith sighed. “Don’t let garbage like this lie around.”   
  
The enemies summoned were stronger this time. They couldn’t beat them. Soon both Rob and Scout were surrounded. Smith rested his foot on Scout’s back.   
  
“You piece of…” Scout growled. Rob tried to get up but was weighed down by one of the soldiers.   
  
“I bet you came here on  a whim and ended up like this.” Smith gave an evil smile,   
  
“No…” Rich tried to reach out to Rob,   
  
“What a worthless piece of trasn, getting emotional so quickly.” Now Smith was the one getting angry. “How DARE you raise your hand at me. Do you remember when I supervised track practice?”   
  
“You just didn’t like our team!” Rich felt his hope crumbling as this all continued on.   
  
“It was an eysore. The only one who needs to achieve good results is me.” The older man scowled.  “The coach was awful too. Had he not opposed me with a sound arguement I would have settled it with breaking his star’s leg.”   
  
Rich felt his blood run cold. “...What?”   
  
“Do you need me to deal with the other leg too? The school’ll only call it self defense after all!”   
  


“...So that’s why..” Scout realised why Rich had been so angry at the teacher. The reincarnated human felt sorry for him.

 

“Once these two are dealt with, you’re next.” Smith laughed. Rob managed to look up, trying to get Rich’s attention.

 

“Rich! Don’t let him win!” He gasped out. 

 

“...You’re right.” Rich felt his fear start to fall away. “Everything that was important to me...I’ve lost because of him…”

 

“Stay there and watch.” It was as if Smith hadn’t heard anything Rich had just said. “Look on as they die because they wanted to side with trash like you.”   
  
“No...That’s what you are.” Rich stood up. “All you think about is using others.” He started walking forward, to Smith’s surprise, a fire behind his golden brown eyes.

 

“What are you doing? Silence him!” He growled. Rich stopped, feeling the rage just boiling over.

 

“Stop looking down at me with that stupid smile on your face!” He screamed out.

 

“You made me wait quite a while.” A voice whispered. Pain surged through Rich’s body and he fell to the floor. Looking over, Rob realised what had happened to him before was now happening to Rich.  “You want power, correct? Then let us form a pact. Your name has been disgraced already. Why not wreak havoc? The ‘other you’ desires to.” Rich tried to stand up, but the pain in his head was too much. “I am thou, thou art I. There’s no turning back. The skull of rebellion is your flag henceforth!” Rich looked up at that moment, the skull mask having suddenly appeared.

 

“What can you do? Cower in fear and watch!” The guard holding Rob down yelled. Rich managed to get up, remembering what Rob had done before, and ripped the mask off, a flash of blue light surrounding him. This was a pirate type persona. Rich’s outfit was more similar to his persona than Rob’s was,a  black jacket along with a black shirt and a red tie. Rich looked up to Smith with a grin.

 

“This one as well?!” Smith was beyond pissed off now.

 

“Holy shit...this rocks!” Rich gave a disbelieving laugh. “Anyways, I guess payback is in order.” Now free, Rob and Scout took their battle stances by his side. “Bring it!”

 

“Don’t mock me!” The guard yelled transforming.

 

“Captain Kidd!” Rich yelled to his persona. “We’re gonna need your help!” They all battled together, and eventually defeated the guard and the two monsters alongside him. After the battle, Smith just looked on in rage.

 

“How about that?” Rich was exhausted, but smug.

 

“So...you had the potential too!” Scout was amazed.   
  
“Even if you apologise now, I ain’t forgiving you.” Rich glared at the teacher. 

 

“This is my castle. It appears you still don’t understand.” Smith suddenly made a gesture to the door.  Someone walked in. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, just green boxers and some white socks. He stood beside Smith and they finally got a glimpse of-

 

“Matt?!” Rich’s eyes were wide.

 

“Woah...” Scout was in complete awe of the human. 

 

“What’s going on?” Rich was confused.

 

“Something’s definetely off.” Rob had seen how afraid Matt looked around Smith. This had to be some sort of trick.

 

“Why is he even here?” Rich whispered, before turning back just in time to see Smith running a hand through Matt’s hair, the younger looking up, almost hypnotized. “LET HIM GO!”

 

“I’ve told you before and I’ll tell you again. I do what I want in my castle.”

 

Rich was desperate now. “Matt...please say something…”

 

“Calm down Rich. Just like the others earlier, this isn’t the real one.” Scout responded.

 

“Are you jealous?” Smith whispered. Rob felt sick. He’d been wondering about Matt earlier. Knowing this was what Smith thought of him...He was cut off from his train of thought as multiple guards appeared.

 

“We have to go.” Scout panicked. “We don’t have time.”

-

When they got outside, they talked things over. “Why the skull?” Rich asked.

 

“It reflects the rebel’s soul.” Rich was confused, but decided not to question it. “Wait...the Smith in the real word-”   
  


“Relax. A shadow is the part of a person that’s repressed. They hide it away.”   
  
“Alright. Now we know that, we’ve gotta go.”

 

“I guided you. Now you need to help me.”

 

“Huh?” Rich replied.

 

“I need to get back to my normal self. We need to delve deep in to Mementos-”   
  


“Wait....We never made any deal.”   
  


“You’re NOT gonna repay the hospitality I showed you?”

 

“Rob, we need to go.” Rich ran off. Rob took a look back at Scout, who just sighed.

 

“Go ahead. Think about my case though.” 

 

He nodded in response.

-

“You have returned to the real world. Welcome back.”

 

“Thank god we’re back.” Rich sighed. “I dragged you around a lot, huh?”

 

“No, it’s alright.” Rob smiled. 

 

“I’m tired. How’re you holding up?” 

 

“I’m exhausted.”

 

“Yeah…” Rich’s eyes widened suddenly. “If what we saw was real, then we’ve got some real dirt to pull on Smith. I remember the faces of the guys he was treating like slaves. We can get evidence.” He explained. “Wanna help?”   
  


“Yeah.” Rob knew he needed to stop what Smith was doing, and he knew Rich couldn’t do it alone, either. They could only do this by working together.

 

“Great! So...I don’t think that’ll help with your record though. Everyone knows.”

 

“How did they find out?”

 

“Guess who talked.” Rob knew from Rich’s tone that it was Smith. Because he was a teacher, it went around the school real quick. Sorry, dude. He just doesn’t like what he doesn’t agree with. He ruins everything.” Rich looked to the concrete. “No one will take anything I say seriously…but after seeing Smith’s distorted heart or whatever in person, there’s no way I can just sit back and do nothing about it.” Rich was determined to stop this man, and Rob wanted to help him. “But for now, we should probably get some food. We could probably have a chat then.”

 

“I’m up for that.”

 

“Great! Follow me!”

-

“WHAT?!?” Rich was surprised when he found out the truth behind Rob’s ‘crime’. “And Smith spread that lie? How much shittier can he get?” Rob just looked to the floor, and Rich calmed down. “So you left your hometown and now you’re here, right? Well....We might be more alike then I first thought.”

 

“How do you mean?”

 

“Well, it’s not exactly how, but....y’know.” Rich sighed. “We’re treated like a pain in the ass by the people around us, like we don’t belong here. I did something stupid at school once.” He finished his food. “You’re living in the room above Leblanc, right? That’s pretty far away, and it’s rush hour, so I think we should kill a little time.” He looked over to Rob’s plate. “You’ve barely touched your food.”   
  


“I’m not as hungry as I thought I was.” He laughed quietly.

 

“Well, just know I’ve got your back from now on. What’s your number? Chat ID too. We can stay in contact. We’ll work everything out tomorrow.”

-

“...I haven’t been sleeping well lately. Whenever I close my eyes, there’s too much on my mind. “

 

“Lucy…” Matt whispered, concerned for his friend.

 

“The nationals for volleyball are coming up soon, so I keep thinking....should I really be on the starting lineup?”

 

“You just have to be confident. That’s all.” He smiled. “You work harder than anyone else.”

 

“Thanks. Volleyball is...really all I have.”

 

“Is your injury ok?”   
  
“It’s nothing. I’ll be fine.” 

 

“Lucy, I’m sorry…” Jake walked up. “Mr Smith told me to get you.”

 

“What does he want?”

 

“He didn’t say.” Matt was getting nervous now.

 

“...Maybe it’s just about the nationals.” He offered a smile, trying to calm both her and himself down/

 

“I guess I better go.” 

 

“Good luck!” He called after her as she walked away. “Hang in there, Lucy.” He whispered, looking down at the ground.

-

“You weren’t late today?”

 

“Nope. As I said, yesterday was an accident.” His phone started to vibrate randomly.

 

rich: hey, i decided to message you

rich: can you see this?

rob: yeah

rich: good, im counting on you tomorrow

rich: gotta go

 

“I’ll lock up for the night.” Mark sighed. Rob went upstairs, and his phone vibrated again.

 

rich: you know that red eyeball thing on your phone?

rob: yeah

rich: the navigator thing

rich: its on my phone too

rich: i didn’t install it

rob: thats weird

rich: it downloaded on its own

rich: wtf

rich: so we can go to that place using it

rob: yeah

rich: we gotta find evidence for the beatings first

-

“Are you getting used to this place?” Igor asked.

 

“...Kinda..I guess.”

 

“I’m glad to hear that.” He sighed. “You can’t defeat ruin on your own, I’m sure you’re aware. But today, you met someone who shared your power, yes? Involving yourself with others is important. You’re doing well. Those who join you have been robbed of their place to belong.”   
  
“Personas are the strength of your heart.” Justine added. “The stronger the bonds around you, the more powerful your persona gets.”

  
“There are people in this town that have talent that you don’t!” Caroline scowled. “You better get them on your side.”

 

“You must be prepared to use help, or your ambititions will not come to be.” Igor told the human. “We have a deal then. You will understand everything in due time, I am sure.”

 

“Back to sleep, inmate!”


End file.
